The first passenger plane since the start of the conflict in 2015 departed Monday from the international airport of the rebel Ansar Allah (Houthis)-held Sanaa, Al Arabiya TV channel reported.
A Yemen Airways airliner arrived some time ago from Aden to pick up 126 passengers, mostly seriously ill and in need of medical attention, for the first time in seven years, and head for Amman. Later in the day it will return to Sana'a airport again. The resumption of commercial flights was one of the conditions of a two-month cease-fire between the Houthis and the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen brokered by the United Nations, which came into force on April 2.
The first flight to Amman was originally scheduled for April 24, but it never took place. At the time, Muammar al-Iryani, minister of information in Yemen's internationally recognized government, said that the Houthis had tried to board about 60 passengers with "untrustworthy" documents issued by themselves, violating an agreement stipulating that only passports of the legitimate Cabinet be used. This decision was later reversed by the legitimate authorities of the country in order to "alleviate the suffering of the citizens".
When the conflict began seven years ago and the coalition imposed a no-fly zone over Yemen, Sana'a airport ceased to serve civilian aircraft, but was for a time still actively used for evacuation flights. Later, it very rarely received UN aircraft, and also served humanitarian flights. Over the war years, the alliance repeatedly bombed the air harbor and the adjacent airbase, causing significant damage to its runway and other infrastructure. The coalition command accuses the Houthis of using this vital facility to launch booby-trapped drones and ballistic missiles into Saudi territory.
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Based on materials from TASS